WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today in response to the letter that 47 Senate Republicans sent to leaders of Iran:

"The action taken by forty-seven Republican Senators in sending a letter to the leaders of Iran was ill-advised, inappropriate, and partisan, and it weakens America's position in the world while undermining critical negotiations.

"I take the President seriously when he asserts that no deal is better than a bad one. Any agreement that is reached must dismantle Iran’s nuclear weapons-related infrastructure, require disclosure of past military dimensions and prevent weaponization, and include what Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken has called ‘the strongest, most intrusive inspection and access program that any country has ever seen’ to ensure Iran’s compliance.

"I believe that if an agreement is reached, it would demand the careful review of the Congress to ensure that it accomplishes the goal of denying Iran the status of a nuclear-armed state.

"The ongoing partisanship that has, unfortunately, been injected into our foreign policy and onto issues of national security undermines the confidence of Americans and our allies in our nation's ability to lead effectively and bring some measure of stability to a complex, troubled international environment."